Work to resume on 57-story skyscraper after 7-year hiatus

Construction of a 57-story skyscraper that will rival Mexico City’s tallest building will go ahead after facing seven years of obstacles and delays, the project’s developer said Thursday.

Abilia, a Mexican company owned by billionaire María Asunción Aramburuzabala, issued a statement saying that the Reforma 432 project would be home to high-end luxury offices as well as shops and services.

The vast majority of the building’s space — 85,000 square meters — will be dedicated to corporate use, while 6,000 square meters will be set aside for commercial purposes.

The high-rise will be located on the corner of the capital’s emblematic boulevard Paseo de la Reforma adjacent to the Diana the Huntress Fountain on the border between the Juárez and Cuauhtémoc neighborhoods.

It will also feature an open plaza at street level that Abilia said would “integrate public space with the commercial and office areas.”

The British architectural firm Foster + Partners is responsible for the project’s design.

Its principal Norman Foster also designed the new Mexico City International Airport project in conjunction with Mexican architect Fernando Romero.

The construction project was initially in the hands of the real estate development company Grupo Elipse and slated to be called Sky Tower.

However, the project never got off the ground and Aramburuzabala, who has been described as Mexico’s most powerful woman, stepped in to take over before she too faced delays in relation to the preparation of the site.

Three years ago, investment in the project was estimated to have been 1.5 billion pesos (almost US $81 million at today’s exchange rate).

Reforma 432 will have the same number of floors as Mexico City’s tallest skyscraper, Torre Reforma, which was completed in 2015.

The company didn’t specify either a starting or expected completion date for the project.

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